The Event... Northwestern College will host the Pizza Ranch Women's Basketball Classic this weekend, Dec. 28-29, at the Bultman Center. Four teams will compete in the Classic; Northwestern, Dordt, Dakota State and Trinity Christian. Complete schedule is below:

    Friday, Dec. 28
    Dakota State vs Dordt, 2pm
    Trinity Christian vs Northwestern, 6pm

    Saturday, Dec. 29
    Dordt vs Trinity Christian, Noon
    Dakota State vs Northwestern, 4pm

The Classic website is here, including links to webcasts and live stats: 2018 Pizza Ranch Women's Basketball Classic 

Team Capsules: 

    No.13 Dordt College: 6-3 (GPAC), 11-4    Head Coach: Bill Harmsen (1st year)

The Defenders have won four of their last five games and posted a 1-1 record in the week prior to the Christmas break. A two-point loss to (RV) Bellevue was followed by a narrow one-point (94-93) overtime win over #24 Midland last time out. Dordt is 11-4 on the year, 5-1 in non-conference games, and is one of eight teams from the GPAC recognized in the NAIA D-II coaches' poll. 

Harmsen takes over the Defenders' program after a stellar career coaching both girls and boys basketball at Western Christian High School. Harmsen won three state titles in five years with the Wolfpack women's team and then guided Western to the boys title in his first year (2017). He inherits a Dordt team that returns all five starters and 10 players from a 2017-18 team that finished seventh in the GPAC with an 8-12 record, 14-17 overall. 

    By the Numbers: (NAIA rank-if top 10)
    Scoring Offense: 85.4ppg (6th)
    Scoring Defense: 70.9ppg
    Field Goal Percentage: 46% (7th)
    3pt Percentage: 33%, 115 3pters 
    Free Throw Percentage: 70% 
    Rebound Margin: +10 (9th)

Top Players:  (GPAC / NAIA rank-if top 10)
    Erika Feenstra (All-Conference)  25.1ppg (1st), 64% FG (1st), 8.5rpg 
    Annie Rhinesmith (All-Conference)  14.2ppg, 32 3pters, 36% 3pt, 82 assists (4th)
    Rachel Evavold (All-Conference) - 11.3ppg, 55% FG, 7.5rpg 
    Payton Harmsen - 9.3ppg, 36 3pters 

    Dakota State Lady T's: 0-1 (NSAA), 1-10    Head Coach: David Moe (2nd year)

Dakota State has lost five straight games heading into the Classic and is 1-10 on the season. Since defeating Trinity Bible 90-35 on Nov. 13, they have lost to Dordt, Bellevue, Briar Cliff, Dakota Wesleyan and University of Jamestown, all of which are ranked. 

Moe, in his second year at DSU after a 10-year stint as assistant at Mayville State, returns one starter and three players from a 2017-18 team that finished fifth in the NSAA regular season with an 8-8 record, the most wins in conference play since the inception of the NSAA. They closed last season with a 12-19 record, losing to Mayville State in the conference quarterfinals. This year's roster features 15 players, 11 of which are freshmen.

    By the Numbers: (NAIA rank-if top 10)
    Scoring Offense: 63.4ppg 
    Scoring Defense: 83.6ppg
    Field Goal Percentage: 37%
    3pt Percentage: 30%, 88 3pters 
    Free Throw Percentage: 63% 
    Rebound Margin: -9

Top Players:  (GPAC / NAIA rank-if top 10)
    Jessi Giles - 10.4ppg, 15 3pters, 3.6rpg
    McKenzie Hermanson - 7.9ppg, 24 3pters, 2.2rpg
    Alexis Robson - 7.6ppg, 23 assists
    Ashlyn Macdonald - 6.8ppg, 13 3pters

    Trinity Christian Trolls: 0-7 (CCAC), 2-13        Head Coach: Bill DeRuiter (3rd year)

Since opening the season with wins over Cornerstone (Mich.) and Lincoln (Ill.), the Trolls have lost 13 straight heading into the weekend. They are 0-7 in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference play and last played a pair of games in Florida against Florida College (98-73) and No.2 Southeastern (135-43). 

De Ruiter, in his third season as the head of the Trolls women's basketball program, returns one starter and five players from a 2017-18 team that finished sixth in the CCAC with a 11-9 record, 17-17 overall. 

By the Numbers: (NAIA rank-if top 10)
    Scoring Offense: 60.8ppg 
    Scoring Defense: 83.1ppg
    Field Goal Percentage: 36%
    3pt Percentage: 25%, 89 3pters 
    Free Throw Percentage: 73% 
    Rebound Margin: -11

Top Players:  (GPAC / NAIA rank-if top 10)
    Jasmine Elliott - 19.2ppg, 8.0rpg
    Breanna Toppen - 12.3ppg, 35 3pters, 33 assists
    Aubrey Goorman - 10.6ppg, 4.9rpg
    Kyla Pitts - 9.1ppg, 30 assists

    No.5 Northwestern College Red Raiders: 8-1 (T2nd), 12-1 overall        Head Coach: Chris Yaw (8th year)

Since its only loss on the road against then-No.2 Dakota Wesleyan (76-73) on Nov.7, Northwestern has won nine straight games, six against teams recognized in the NAIA D-II Coaches' poll. They are tied with both Dakota Wesleyan and Concordia for first in the current standings, owning an 8-1 league record nearing the halfway point of the conference slate. 

The Red Raiders are one of the top scoring teams in the NAIA, ranking third at 89 points per game. They also lead the NAIA in field goal percentage and have shot better than their opponent in 11 of the 13 games played. 

Northwestern has outrebounded its opponent in all but three games (DWU, MMC and Dordt) and is the top rebounding team in the GPAC

Kassidy De Jong has scored in double figures in every game this season; Darbi Gustafson has scored in double figures in all but one game and leads the team with six double-doubles

De Jong (8th), Gustafson (21st) and Birks (27th) have all scored over 1,000 points and rank among the top 30 all-time in scoring

De Jong is seventh all-time with 788 rebounds; Gustafson is T13th (720), Birks is 35th (479)

By the Numbers: (NAIA rank-if top 10)
    Scoring Offense: 88.4ppg (3rd)
    Scoring Defense: 67.2ppg 
    Field Goal Percentage: 49% (1st)
    3pt Percentage: 39% (4th), 111 3pters 
    Free Throw Percentage: 78% (7th)
    Rebound Margin: +11 (7th)

Top Players:  (GPAC / NAIA rank-if top 10)
    Kassidy De Jong (3x All-Conference) 19.8ppg (5th), 50% FG, 34 3pters, 7.6rpg
    Darbi Gustafson  18.7ppg, 59% FG (9th), 8.5rpg, 15 blks
    Haley Birks (3x All-Conference)  14.9ppg, 86% FT, 4rpg
    Sammy Blum - 11,1ppg, 35 3pters, 47% 3pt (9th), 45 assists
    Breana Schuiteman - 8.4ppg, 22 3pters, 40% 3pt